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True Power
The True Power is a source of energy similar to the One Power, however, it comes directly from the Dark One. It is not differentiated into male and female halves, which work constantly with and against each other, but rather as one reservoir of power that is available to members of either sex. It is also only available to Darkfriends who can channel. History The True Power was the "unified power source" that Mierin and Beidomon were trying to tap into when the Sharom was destroyed and the Bore into the Dark One's prison was created. Characteristics Since only those sworn to the Shadow can tap into the True Power, very little is known about its attributes. It can be used much like the powers of saidar and saidin, although both genders can access it equally well. The True Power can perform many feats that the One Power can, although it does them in such a different way that it may betray the wielder's chaotic origins: a gateway created with the True Power causes a subsonic "scream" as the Pattern is ripped to shreds; the Healing performed on Lews Therin Telamon just before he died was much more painful than ordinary Healing, and was said to "darken the sun" and to "sear his body" when it was forced on him by Ishamael. The True Power is also undetectable to any channelers other than the wielder, unlike saidar and saidin. The gholam in Ebou Dar could feel it, but didn't recall the meaning of that feeling. It would appear that the True Power is more inherently destructive than the One Power. This is evidenced by the fact that it seems to have the ability to destroy objects that are impossible to harm with the One Power; a Domination Band that would not even heat up when exposed to intense weaves of Fire can be destroyed by a simple spear of Fire and Air if one wields the True Power. It is also possible that is is the only power with the ability to destroy heartstone, but this has not been directly seen. This is evidenced by Rand's sword melting during his fight with Ishamael in the skies above Falme, as well as the weakening of the Dark One's seals. It is described as being a hundred times as violent as saidin; even holding it is torturously painful. These traits likely reflect the chaotic and destructive nature of the Power's source. It also does not appear to have the same limits as the One Power to how much of it can be drawn. Rand described the amount of energy that he held when first grasping it as being similar to drawing Power from both Choden Kal, and Ishamael presumably drew enough of it to combat Callandor before he was run through with it. It also appears to generate a physical warping of the Pattern surrounding an individual; Rand was described as having a dark aura that could be almost more sensed than seen and may have even caused an unusual decay of objects around him when he was feeling stong emotions (tea becoming undrinkable), and which produced feelings of unease in those around him. A much more evident manifestation of this aura was Ishamael himself; he was almost constantly surrounded by an intensely dark aura which grew darker the more agitated or angry he became. As Moridin, the only evidence that he posesses the aura was seen when Aviendha saw him watching her group go through a Gateway and she felt great fear at his presence, though all he did was watch. One of the wounds in Rand's side, the one given to him by Ishamael, is almost certainly a result of being burned with the True Power, and cannot be Healed by either the One Power or the body's own natural healing processes. As with Lews Therin's madness however, it may be possible to heal the wound with the True Power. Balefire does not appear to have any unusual characteristics when woven with the True Power versus the One Power, nor does it require any special knowledge to weave. Thus it is likely that there is no technical difference between creating a weave with the True Power versus the One Power. Rand al'Thor channeled the True Power in his desperation to save Min from Semirhage. Since only those with permission from the Dark One are given access to the True Power, either the Dark One gave access to Rand for some unknown reason, or Rand's mysterious link with Moridin allowed him to draw on the True Power. Dangers Use of the True Power has a greater cost than that of the One Power; unlike the urge to channel saidar or saidin, which can be controlled safely with willpower, those who channel the True Power find themselves irresistibly drawn to consume more and more of it as time goes on (or as long as they are allowed to by the Dark One). Flecks and strands of blackness, called saa, appear in the eyes of a habitual user, increasing as he or she channeled more and more of the True Power. Eventually, the saa would spread across one's entire eyes to color them completely black, at which point the channeler would become totally and irreversibly insane. These flecks move across the eyes in greater quantities and with greater speed when one draws more deeply on the Power. When severe amounts of the True Power is used, in later stages, even greater deformities may occur, such as in the case of Ishamael before he became Moridin. It has also been speculated that the appearances of Ishamael's mouth and eyes, which were replaced by yellow-green flame, may have been by result of overuse of the True Power. Perhaps the metaphor of an obsession so great that it burns and gnaws at someone may have been taken literal here: maybe the overuse of the True Power was so self-destructive that it had actually began to burn away at Ishamael, although the only reason that would explain the color of the fire (instead of being red, orange, and yellow) would be that is was of such an intense temperature that it surpassed red (as fire moves along the spectrum as it gains heat), or that the True Power's magical energy was enough to distort not only Ishamael's body, but also the fire that consumed him. When Ishamael was awakened from death and given the name Moridin, he did not stop using the True Power; however, he has entered only the beginning stages of degeneration, with only saa appearing, although what the future will bring and how it will harm his new body is unknown. True Power